Senate moving toward vote on immigration

News-Times, The (Danbury, CT), SUZANNE GAMBOA Associated Press Writer

Published 1:00 am, Tuesday, May 23, 2006

WASHINGTON (AP) - A California Democrat is pushing a plan to allow the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants in the country since Jan. 1 to remain, work and get a shot at citizenship as the Senate heads to a final vote on its sweeping immigration bill.

Sen.
Dianne Feinstein
's plan would supplant the compromise reached by key senators on immigration last month, if approved. That compromise allows illegal immigrants here five years or more to stay and work and after six years seek legal residency after paying back taxes and fines and showing they were learning English.

Those in the country two to five years must go to a point of entry, exit and file an application to return as a guest worker. Those here less than two years must leave the country. They could apply from their native country to return as a guest worker or on a visa.

"I have come to believe that the three-tiered system is unworkable, that it would create a bureaucratic nightmare and it would lead to substantial fraud," said Feinstein, whose proposal was scheduled for a vote Tuesday.

She offered the plan just before Senate Majority Leader
Bill Frist
set the stage for a preliminary vote Wednesday that could quickly bring the bill quickly to a final vote. The bill appears headed for passage.

A bigger fight on the bill is still to come _ when the House and Senate meet to negotiate a compromise bill. The House passed an enforcement-only bill that makes illegal immigrants felons, cracks down on hiring of illegal immigrants and steps up border security. It offers no path to citizenship or a guest worker program, which critics say is amnesty.

The Senate was moving to vote on the bill as Mexico President
Vicente Fox
was scheduled to make a swing through three U.S. western states.

Feinstein's proposal faced an uphill climb. Republican Sen.
John Cornyn
of Texas said it suffered the same "infirmities" as the bipartisan bill approved by the
Senate Judiciary Committee
, which offered citizenship for all illegal immigrants.

Feinstein's proposal would require all illegal immigrants to register with the
Department of Homeland Security
, get fingerprinted and go through criminal and national security background checks.

They would get an "orange card" encrypted with identifying information and signifying they are legal workers after passing the background checks, demonstrating an understanding of English, U.S. history and government and paying back taxes and a $2,000 fine to apply.

They would go to the back of the line and could apply for legal permanent residency when a number they are given is reached.

Also Monday, the Senate showed support for President Bush's plan to deploy
National Guard
troops to the border by endorsing an amendment authorizing governors to order their state's Guard units to perform duties in border states.